Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The Château de Montceaux, located in Montceaux-lès-Meaux in Seine-et-Marne, has its origins in the early 16th century. Around 1520, the Saligaut family (or Saligot) began its construction, and in 1544, Jean Laguette, notary and secretary of the king enriched by his financial functions, rebuilt it into a quadrilateral surrounded by moat, with stone and brick facades inspired by Vitruve principles. This castle, almost completed in 1555, attracts the attention of Henry II, who forced Laguette to give it to him before offering it to Catherine de Medici. The latter makes sumptuous arrangements, including a cave pavilion designed by Philibert Delorme, competing with the creations of the Primatice in Meudon.

In 1596, after the death of Catherine de Medici, Henry IV offered the castle to his favourite, Gabrielle d'Estrées, who undertook an ambitious reconstruction with Jacques II Androuet du Cerceau. At his death in 1599, the works were resumed by Marie de Medici, who entrusted their completion to Salomon de Brosse until 1622. The castle, owned by the Crown, was then given to the prince of Conti in 1783 before being demolished after the Revolution, leaving only remains: a chapel, foreyard buildings transformed into a bourgeois house, and part of it was converted into a farm.

Today, the estate is divided between several private owners. The ruins, threatened by erosion and vegetation, are undergoing urgent restoration supported by the DRAC Île-de-France and the Heritage Foundation. The site, open to the public during cultural events (concerts, theatre, equestrian shows), seeks to rediscover its festive and artistic vocation in Dantan. The present owners organize various events there, while preserving the memory of this "Three Queens Castle" classified as a historical monument in 2005.

Future

Destroyed shortly after the Revolution, today there are some ruins as well as a chapel, the foreyard buildings transformed into a bourgeois house and the eastern part of the castle became a farm body. A park called the Château de Montceaux also preserves its memory. The castle is classified as historical monuments in 2005.

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